System for avoiding blind spot of vehicle and method thereof

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, where the apparatus for avoiding the blind spot of the vehicle includes an image sensor configured to provide image information by acquiring a surrounding image of a host vehicle, and a vehicle controller configured to sense a large vehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle based on the image information, determine a blind spot range of the large vehicle, determine a dangerous level of the blind spot range, and generate a path for the host vehicle to deviate from the blind spot or to avoids the blind spot, based on a traveling situation of the host vehicle.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 (a) of KoreanPatent Application No. 10-2020-0074240, filed on Jun. 18, 2020 in theKorean Intellectual Property Office, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates to a system for avoiding a blind spot ofa vehicle and a method thereof, and more particularly to a system foravoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, capable of determining a dangerouslevel of a blind spot of a surrounding large vehicle, and allowing ahost vehicle to travel by generating a traveling path of avoiding theblind spot, thereby preventing an accident from occurring due to theblind spot of the large vehicle, and a method thereof.

2. Description of Related Art

In general, a driver has to determine a traffic situation during drivingof a vehicle and to drive the vehicle. In particular, the driver has todrive the vehicle by appropriately detecting a surrounding vehicle.

However, the driver may sense only a limit area due to the structurallimitation of the vehicle.

The limit area refers to a side area, which is sensed by the driverthrough a side view mirror, and a blind spot, which is sensed as thedriver turns the head of the driver and is an area other than the sidearea.

Although a blind spot detection (BSD) system has been developed suchthat the driver recognizes the blind spot through a sensor, all vehiclesare not equipped with the BSD system.

Accordingly, although a host vehicle is equipped with the BSD system, anext-lane vehicle, which is not equipped with the BSD system andpositioned on a next lane, may still change the lane while failing torecognize the host vehicle positioned in a blind spot of the next-lanevehicle, and the host vehicle has to avoid the blind spot and travel.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts insimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subjectmatter.

In one general aspect, there is provided an apparatus for avoiding ablind spot of a vehicle, the apparatus including an image sensorconfigured to provide image information by acquiring a surrounding imageof a host vehicle, and a vehicle controller configured to sense a largevehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle based on the imageinformation, determine a blind spot range of the large vehicle,determine a dangerous level of the blind spot range, and generate a pathfor the host vehicle to deviate from the blind spot or to avoids theblind spot, based on a traveling situation of the host vehicle.

The vehicle controller may include a blind spot range generatorconfigured to sense the large vehicle traveling adjacent to the hostvehicle, based on the image information and to determine a default blindspot range of the large vehicle, a traveling road information generatorconfigured to provide, as traveling road information, information on aroad on which the host vehicle is travelling, based on the imageinformation, a blind spot range changing device configured to change thedefault blind spot range, based on the traveling road information, ablind spot dangerous level determiner configured to match the dangerouslevel with the changed default blind spot range, and a path generatorconfigured to generate a path to minimize the dangerous level, based onthe traveling situation of the host vehicle and to longitudinally orlaterally control the host vehicle.

The blind spot range generator may include an object type determiningdevice configured to determine a type of the large vehicle, based on theimage information, an object size determining device configured tocalculate a size of the large vehicle, based on the image information, ahost vehicle information store configured to store at least a height ofthe host vehicle and a roof area of the host vehicle, and a blind spotrange determiner configured to determine the default blind spot range,based on the type of the large vehicle, the size of the large vehicle,the height of the host vehicle, and the roof area of the host vehicle.

The blind spot range determiner may be configured to select one of blindspots stored depending on types of large vehicles, based on the type ofthe large vehicle, match the selected blind spot with the large vehicle,and determine the default blind spot range based on the size of thelarge vehicle, the height of the host vehicle, and the roof area of thehost vehicle.

The blind spot dangerous level determiner may be configured to match thedangerous level to the default blind spot range changed depending on atraveling path of the host vehicle and a traveling path of the largevehicle, based on a merging point included in the traveling roadinformation.

The vehicle controller may be configured to transmit travelinginformation of the host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response of afailure to generate a path in which the host vehicle deviates from theblind spot range of the large vehicle.

The vehicle controller may be configured to transmit travelinginformation of the host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response to thepath of avoiding the blind spot of the large vehicle passing through theblind spot.

The vehicle controller may be configured to control the host vehicle todecelerate on a traveling path, in response to a failure to generate thepath in which the host vehicle deviates from the blind spot or avoidsthe blind spot for traveling.

The vehicle controller may be configured to generate the path tominimize a dangerous level of the blind spot.

In another general aspect, there is provided a processor-implementedmethod for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, the method includingproviding image information by acquiring a surrounding image of a hostvehicle through an image sensor, sensing, by a vehicle controller, alarge vehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle based on the imageinformation, determining a blind spot range of the large vehicle,determining a dangerous level of the blind spot range, and generating apath for the host vehicle to deviate from the blind spot or to avoid theblind spot, based on a traveling situation of the host vehicle.

The method may include the sensing of the large vehicle may includesensing the large vehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle anddetermining a default blind spot range of the large vehicle, providing,as traveling road information, information on a road on which the hostvehicle is travelling, based on the image information, changing thedefault blind spot range, based on the traveling road information, andmatching the dangerous level with the changed default blind spot range,and the generating of the path may include generating a path to minimizethe dangerous level, based on the traveling situation of the hostvehicle and longitudinally or laterally controlling the host vehicle.

The determining of the default blind spot range may include determininga type of the large vehicle, based on the image information, calculatinga size of the large vehicle, based on the image information, storingdata of the host vehicle, including a height of the host vehicle and aroof area of the host vehicle, and determining the default blind spotrange, based on the type of the large vehicle, the size of the largevehicle, the height of the host vehicle, and the roof area of the hostvehicle.

The determining of the default blind spot range may include selectingone of blind spots stored depending on types of large vehicles, based onthe determined type of the large vehicle, and matching the selectedblind spot with the sensed large vehicle, and determining the defaultblind spot range based on the determined size of the large vehicle, theheight of the host vehicle, and the roof area of the host vehicle, suchthat blind spot range is determined.

The matching of the dangerous level with the changed default blind spotrange may include matching the dangerous level to the default blind spotrange changed depending on a traveling path of the host vehicle and atraveling path of the large vehicle, based on a merging point includedin the traveling road information.

The generating of the path in which the host vehicle deviates from theblind spot or avoids the blind spot, may include transmitting travelinginformation of the host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response of afailure to generate a path in which the host vehicle deviates from theblind spot range of the large vehicle.

The generating of the path in which the host vehicle deviates from theblind spot or avoids the blind spot, may include transmitting travelinginformation of the host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response to thepath of avoiding the blind spot of the large vehicle passing through theblind spot.

The generating of the path in which the host vehicle deviates from theblind spot or avoids the blind spot, may include controlling the hostvehicle to decelerate on a traveling path, in response to a failure togenerate the path in which the host vehicle deviates from the blind spotor avoids the blind spot for traveling.

Other features and aspects will be apparent from the following detaileddescription, the drawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will be more apparent from the following detailed descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system for avoiding a blindspot of a vehicle, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a blind spot range generatorconstituting a system for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a blind spot of a large vehicle applied toa system for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 4A to 6B, and 7 are views illustrating detection of a blind spotof a large vehicle through a system for avoiding a blind spot of avehicle, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 8A to 9B are views illustrating generation of a path through asystem for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIGS. 10 and 11 are flowcharts illustrating a method for avoiding ablind spot of a, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed in detail with reference to accompanying drawings. In addingthe reference numerals to the components of each drawing, it should benoted that the identical or equivalent component is designated by theidentical numeral even when they are displayed on other drawings. Inaddition, in the following description of an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a detailed description of well-known features or functionswill be ruled out in order not to unnecessarily obscure the gist of thepresent disclosure.

In describing the components of the embodiment according to the presentdisclosure, terms such as first, second, “A”, “B”, (a), (b), and thelike may be used. These terms are merely intended to distinguish onecomponent from another component, and the terms do not limit the nature,sequence or order of the constituent components. In addition, unlessotherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical orscientific terms, have the same meanings as those generally understoodby those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains.Such terms as those defined in a generally used dictionary are to beinterpreted as having meanings equal to the contextual meanings in therelevant field of art, and are not to be interpreted as having ideal orexcessively formal meanings unless clearly defined as having such in thepresent application.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be describedwith reference to FIGS. 1 to 9.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system for avoiding a blindspot of a vehicle, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure,FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a blind spot range generatorconstituting a system for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 3 is a viewillustrating a blind spot of a large vehicle applied to a system foravoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. FIGS. 4 to 7 are views illustrating detection of ablind spot of a large vehicle through a system for avoiding a blind spotof a vehicle, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, andFIGS. 8 and 9 are views illustrating generation of a path through asystem for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a system for avoiding the blind spot of the vehicle mayinclude a sensor 110, an image sensor 130, a vehicle controller 200, adisplay 300, a speed controller 500, and a communication device 700.

The sensor 110 may include a radar, a Light Detection and Ranging(LiDAR), and an ultrasonic sensor mounted on a side surface of the hostvehicle 100, may sense a next-lane vehicle traveling on a lane next to alane of the host vehicle 100, and may provide information on thenext-lane vehicle to the vehicle controller 200.

The image sensor 130 may include at least one of a front camera toacquire a front image of the host vehicle 100, a rear camera to acquirea rear image of the host vehicle 100, a left camera to acquire a leftimage of the host vehicle 100, or a right camera to acquire a rightimage of the host vehicle 100. The image sensor 130 may acquire asurrounding image of the host vehicle 100, may generate imageinformation, and may provide the generated image information to thevehicle controller 200.

For example, the image sensor 130 may acquire the front image, the rearimage, the left image, and the right image of the host vehicle 100, andmay provide the acquired image, which serves as the image information,to a blind spot range generator 210 and a traveling road informationgenerator 230 of the vehicle controller 200.

The vehicle controller 200 may include a blind spot range generator 210,a traveling road information generator 230, a blind spot range changingdevice 250, a blind spot dangerous level determining device 270, and apath generator 290.

The blind spot range generator 210 may receive, as the imageinformation, the sensing result of the sensor 110 and a surroundingimage, which is acquired from the image sensor 130, of the host vehicle100. The blind spot range generator 210 may determine a default blindspot range of the large vehicle 50 traveling around the host vehicle100, based on the image information.

In this case, the blind spot range generator 210 may provide, as defaultblind spot range information, the determined default blind spot range ofthe large vehicle 50 to the blind spot range changing device 250.

For example, the blind spot range generator 210 may sense the largevehicle 50 positioned around the host vehicle 100, based on the imageinformation, may determine the type and the size of the large vehicle50, may determine the default blind spot range of the large vehicle 50traveling around the host vehicle 100, based on the type and the size ofthe large vehicle 50 and the information of the host vehicle 100, andmay provide, as the default blind spot range information, the defaultblind spot range of the large vehicle 50 to the blind spot rangechanging device 250.

In addition, referring to FIG. 2, the blind spot range generator 210 mayinclude an object type determining device 211, an object sizedetermining device 213, a host vehicle information storage 215, and ablind spot range determining device 217.

The object type determining device 211 may determine the type of avehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle 100, based on the imageinformation, and may provide, as determined object type information, thedetermined information to the object size determining device 213 and theblind spot range determining device 217.

For example, when the vehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle 100is determined as being the large vehicle 50, based on the imageinformation, the object type determining device 211 may insert theinformation on that the vehicle traveling adjacent to the host vehicle100 is the large vehicle 50, and information on the type of the largevehicle 50 into determined object type information, and may provide theinserting result to the object size determining device 213 and the blindspot range determining device 217. In this case, the type of the largevehicle 50 may include a truck or a bus.

The object size determining device 213 may calculate the size of thelarge vehicle 50, based on the image information, and provide, as objectsize information, the calculated information to the blind spot rangedetermining device 217, when the information on that the vehicletraveling adjacent to the host vehicle 100 is the large vehicle 50 isinserted into the determined object type information provided from theobject type determining device 211.

For example, the object size determining device 213 may calculate thetotal height and the width of the large vehicle 50, based on the imageinformation, and provide, as the object size information, the calculatedinformation to the blind spot range determining device 217, whenreceiving the information on that the vehicle traveling adjacent to thehost vehicle 100 is the large vehicle 50, and the information on thetype of the large vehicle 50.

The host vehicle information storage 215 may store information (such asthe total height and the width of the host vehicle 100, and an area of amain portion (for example, a roof area of the vehicle or an area betweenan A pillar and a C pillar) forming the total height of the host vehicle100) of the host vehicle 100, and may provide, as information (hostvehicle information) on the host vehicle 100, the stored information tothe blind spot range determining device 217.

The blind spot range determining device 217 may receive the determinedobject type information from the object type determining device 211,receive the object size information from the object size determiningdevice 213, and receive the information on the host vehicle from thehost vehicle information storage 215.

The blind spot range determining device 217 may generate the defaultblind spot range information, based on at least one of the determinedobject type information, the object size information, and the hostvehicle information.

For example, the blind spot range determining device 217 may determinethe default blind spot range of the large vehicle 50 traveling adjacentto the host vehicle 100, based on the type of the large vehicle 50,which is included in the determined object type information, the size ofthe large vehicle 50, which is included in the object size information,and the total height of the host vehicle 100 and the roof area of thehost vehicle 100 which are included in the information on the hostvehicle 100, and may output, as the default blind spot rangeinformation, the determined default blind spot range.

In other words, the blind spot range determining device 217 may selectone of blind spots stored depending on types of large vehicles 50, basedon the determined type of the large vehicle 50, may match the selectedblind spot with the sensed large vehicle 50, and may determine the blindspot range matched with the large vehicle 50, based on the determinedsize of the large vehicle 50 and the total height and the roof area ofthe host vehicle 100, thereby determining the default blind spot range.

The traveling road information generator 230 may receive, as the imageinformation, the surrounding image, which is acquired from the imagesensor 130, of the host vehicle 100, may generate information on a road(traveling road of the host vehicle 100) on which the host vehicle 100travels, based on the image information, and may provide, as travelingroad information, the generated road information to the blind spot rangechanging device 250 and the blind spot dangerous level determiningdevice 270.

For example, the traveling road information generator 230 may determinea curvature, a lateral gradient, a longitudinal gradient, and a mergingpoint of the travelling road of the host vehicle 100, based on the imageinformation, and may provide, as the traveling road information, thedetermined information to the blind spot range changing device 250 andthe blind spot dangerous level determining device 270.

The blind spot range changing device 250 may receive the default blindspot range information provided from the blind spot range generator 210and the traveling road information provided from the traveling roadinformation generator 230.

The blind spot range changing device 250 may generate changed blind spotrange information by changing the default blind spot range information,which is generated based on the image information, based on thetraveling road information, and may provide the generated and changedblind spot range information to the blind spot dangerous leveldetermining device 270.

For example, the blind spot range changing device 250 may expand orreduce the blind spot range of the large vehicle 50, which is includedin the default blind spot range information, based on at least one ofinformation on a curvature, information on a lateral gradient, orinformation on a longitudinal gradient of the traveling road, which isincluded in the traveling road information, and may output the expandedor reduced result serving as the changed blind spot range information.

The blind spot dangerous level determining device 270 may match thedangerous level with the changed blind spot range information, based onthe traveling road information, and may output, as blind spotinformation, the information on the changed blind spot range informationmatched with the dangerous level.

For example, when a merging point, at which the travelling road of thehost vehicle 100 is merged with another road, is included in thetraveling road information, the blind spot dangerous level determiningdevice 270 may determine a dangerous ranking for blind spots of thelarge vehicle 50, based on the traveling path of the host vehicle 100and the traveling path of the large vehicle 50.

In other words, the blind spot dangerous level determining device 270may match the dangerous level to the default blind sport range, which ischanged depending on the traveling path of the host vehicle 100 and thetraveling path of the large vehicle 50, based on the merging pointincluded in the traveling road information.

The path generator 290 may generate a path to minimize the dangerouslevel, based on the traveling situation of the host vehicle 100, and maylongitudinally or laterally control for the host vehicle 100 such thatthe host vehicle 100 may travel while deviating from or avoiding theblind spot.

The display 300 may include a sound device or a display device. Thedisplay 300 may link to a navigation device (not illustrated) to map apath (avoiding path) for avoiding the blind spot and a path (deviatingpath) for deviating from the blind spot to map data and may display themap data on a screen.

The speed controller 500 may control the host vehicle 100 to decelerateor accelerate on the traveling path, when the host vehicle 100 fails togenerate the path for deviating from the blind spot or the path foravoiding the blind spot to travel.

The communication device 700, which makes communication with the largevehicle 50 that is able to make Vehicle to Anything (V2X) communication,and the V2X communication may include Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) orVehicle to Vehicle (V2V). The communication device 700 may transmittraveling information including the position, the speed, the type, thestatus, or the path of the host vehicle 100 to the large vehicle 50.

Hereinafter, an operation for the blind spot range determining device217 to generate the default blind spot range information, based on thedetermined object type information, object size information, and hostvehicle information will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5.

The blind spot range determining device 217 may have various types ofblind spot information depending on the types of the blind spot 50.

The blind spot range determining device 217 may select one of blind spotinformation stored depending on the types of the large vehicle 50, basedon the determined object type information, and may match the selectedblind spot information with the sensed large vehicle 50.

Referring to FIG. 3, when the large vehicle 50 is a truck, the blindspot of the large vehicle 50 may include a left blind spot “A” of thelarge vehicle 50, a right blind spot “B” of the large vehicle 50, afront-right blind spot “C” of the large vehicle 50, and a rear blindspot “D” of the large vehicle 50.

In this case, the blind spot of the large vehicle 50, which isillustrated in FIG. 3, is shown on the assumption that the driver seatof the large vehicle 50 is positioned at the left side. Accordingly,when the driver seat of the large vehicle 50 is positioned at the rightside, the form of the blind spot of the large vehicle 50 may be changed.

The blind spot range determining device 217 may expand or reduce therange (e.g., size) of the blind spot matched with the large vehicle 50,based on information on the host vehicle 100.

For example, the blind spot range determining device 217 may expand orreduce the blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, based onat least one of the total height of the host vehicle 100 or the roofarea of the host vehicle 100, which are included in the information onthe host vehicle 100.

In more detail, the blind spot range determining device 217 may expandthe blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, as the totalheight of the host vehicle 100, which is included in the information onthe host vehicle 100, is reduced.

Meanwhile, the blind spot range determining device 217 may reduce theblind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, as the total heightof the host vehicle 100, which is included in the information on thehost vehicle 100, is increased.

The blind spot range determining device 217 should be configured toexpand or reduce the blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50,based on the total height of the host vehicle 100, because the driver ofthe large vehicle 50 fails to sufficiently recognize the host vehicle100, as the total height of the host vehicle 100 becomes lower, whilebeing able to sufficiently recognize the host vehicle 100, as the totalheight of the host vehicle 100 becomes higher as illustrated in FIG. 4A.

Meanwhile, the blind spot range determining device 217 may reduce theblind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, as the roof area ofthe host vehicle 100, which is included in the information on the hostvehicle 100, is increased.

Meanwhile, the blind spot range determining device 217 may expand theblind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, as the roof area ofthe host vehicle 100, which is included in the information on the hostvehicle 100, is reduced.

The blind spot range determining device 217 should be configured toexpand or reduce the blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50,based on the roof area of the host vehicle 100, because the driver ofthe large vehicle 50 fails to sufficiently recognize the host vehicle100, as the roof area of the host vehicle 100 becomes narrower, whilebeing able to sufficiently recognize the host vehicle 100, as the roofarea of the host vehicle 100 becomes wider as illustrated in FIG. 4B.

In other words, when the roof area of the host vehicle 100 is wider, thedriver of the large vehicle 50 may more easily recognize the hostvehicle 100, as compared to when the roof area of the host vehicle 100is narrower. Accordingly, the matched blind spot of the large vehicle 50may be expanded or reduced based on the roof area of the host vehicle100, thereby ensuring the safety of the host vehicle 100.

In addition, the blind spot range determining device 217 may expand orreduce the blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50, based onthe total height of the large vehicle 50, which is included in theinformation on the object size.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 5A, the blind spot range determiningdevice 217 may expand the blind spot range matched with the largevehicle 50, as the total height of the large vehicle 50, which isincluded in the object size information, becomes higher.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 5B, the blind spot range determiningdevice 217 may reduce the blind spot range matched with the largevehicle 50, as the total height of the large vehicle 50, which isincluded in the object size information, becomes lower.

The blind spot range determining device 217 should be configured toexpand or reduce the blind spot range matched with the large vehicle 50,based on the total height of the large vehicle 50, because the driver ofthe large vehicle 50 having the higher total height fails tosufficiently recognize the host vehicle 100 traveling adjacent to thelarge vehicle 50 while the driver of the large vehicle 50 having thelower total height sufficiently recognizes the host vehicle 100traveling adjacent to the large vehicle 50.

In other words, the driver of the large vehicle 50 having the lowertotal height may more easily recognize the host vehicle 100 travelingadjacent to the large vehicle 50, as compared with the driver of thelarge vehicle 50 having the higher total height. Accordingly, the safetyof the host vehicle 100 may be ensured by expanding or reducing theblind spot of the large vehicle 50 depending on the sensed total heightof the large vehicle 50.

As described above, the blind spot range changing device 250 of FIG. 1may change the default blind spot range information of the large vehicle50, which is generated from the blind spot range generator 210, based onthe traveling road information, and may output, as the changed blindspot range information of the large vehicle 50, the default blind spotrange information of the large vehicle 50, which is changed.

For example, the blind spot range changing device 250 may change thedefault blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, based onthe information on the curvature, the information on the lateralgradient, and the information on the longitudinal gradient included inthe traveling road information of the host vehicle 100, and may output,as the changed blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, thedefault blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, which ischanged.

As illustrated in FIG. 6A, the blind spot range changing device 250 mayexpand a right blind spot range of the large vehicle 50 on a left turnroad, based on the curvature of the traveling road of the host vehicle100, which is included in the traveling road information, and may insertinformation on the expanded right blind spot of the large vehicle 50into the changed blind spot range. In this case, the blind spot rangechanging device 250 may expand the right blind spot range of the largevehicle 50, as the curvature of the left turn road is increased.Although not illustrated, the blind spot range changing device 250 mayexpand a left blind spot range of the large vehicle 50 on a right turnroad, based on the curvature of the traveling road of the host vehicle100, which is included in the traveling road information.

In this case, the blind spot range changing device 250 may expand theleft blind spot range of the large vehicle 50, as the curvature of theright turn road is increased.

As described above, the blind spot range changing device 250 may expandor reduce the default blind spot range, which is included in the defaultblind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, based on thecurvature of the road, and may output information on the expanded orreduced range as the changed blind spot range information of the largevehicle 50.

In addition, the blind spot range changing device 250 may change thedefault blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, based onthe information on the longitudinal gradient of the travelling roadincluded in the traveling road information, and may output, as thechanged blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, thedefault blind spot range information of the large vehicle 50 which ischanged.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 6A, the blind spot range changingdevice 250 may expand a front-right blind spot of the large vehicle 50,when the large vehicle 50 reaches a turning point of the longitudinalgradient included in the traveling road information. In this case,although FIG. 6B illustrates that the front-right blind spot of thelarge vehicle 50 is expanded at the turning point of the longitudinalgradient, at which an uphill is switched to a downhill, the front-rightblind spot of the large vehicle 50 may be reduced at a point at whichthe downhill is switched to the uphill.

Although illustrated in FIGS. 6A-6B, the blind spot range changingdevice 250 may expand and reduce the front-right blind spot of the largevehicle 50 at a turning point of the lateral gradient, based oninformation on the lateral gradient of the travelling road, which isincluded in the traveling road information.

As described above, the blind spot range changing device 250 may expandor reduce the default blind spot range, which is included in the defaultblind spot range information of the large vehicle 50, at the turningpoint of the longitudinal gradient or the lateral gradient, and mayoutput information on the expanded or reduced range as the changed blindspot range information of the large vehicle 50.

The blind spot dangerous level determining device 270 of FIG. 1 maymatch the dangerous level with the blind spot of the large vehicle 50,which is included in the changed blind spot range information, based onthe traveling road information, and may output the changed blind spotrange information of the large vehicle 50, which is matched with thedangerous level, as blind spot information.

For example, when a merging point, at which the traveling road of thehost vehicle 100 is merged with another road, is included in thetraveling road information, the blind spot dangerous level determiningdevice 270 may determine the dangerous ranking with respect to the blindspot of the large vehicle 50, based on the traveling path of the largevehicle 50 and the traveling path of the host vehicle 100, and mayoutput the change blind spot range information having the determineddangerous ranking, as the blind spot information.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, when viewed from the mergingpoint included in the traveling road information and when the hostvehicle 100 is traveling at the right side of the large vehicle 50, theblind spot dangerous level determining device 270 may match a dangerouslevel, which is higher than that of the left blind spot, to the rightblind spot of the large vehicle 50 and the changed blind spot rangeinformation of the large vehicle 50 having the matched dangerous levelmay be output as the blind spot information.

Meanwhile, although not disclosed in drawings, when viewed from themerging point included in the traveling road information and when thehost vehicle 100 is traveling at the left side of the large vehicle 50,the blind spot dangerous level determining device 270 may match adangerous level, which is higher than that of the right blind spot, tothe left blind spot of the large vehicle 100 and the change blind spotrange information of the large vehicle 50 having the matched dangerouslevel may be output as the blind spot information.

In addition, the blind spot dangerous level determining device 270 maygenerate blind spot information by matching the highest dangerous levelto a blind spot of the large vehicle 50, in which the host vehicle 100is to be merged at the merging point, based on the traveling path of thehost vehicle 100 and the traveling path of the large vehicle 50.

The vehicle controller 200 may provide an alert to the driver of thehost vehicle 100 or may provide a path for deviating from or avoidingthe blind spot of the large vehicle 50, when determining that the hostvehicle 100 travels in the blind spot of the large vehicle 50 or thetraveling path of the host vehicle 100 passes through the blind spot ofthe large vehicle 50 by using blind spot information

For example, when the host vehicle 100 is positioned in the blind spotof the large vehicle 50, the vehicle controller 200 may control thespeed controller 500 to decelerate the speed of the host vehicle 100 ormay change a lane of the host vehicle 100 to a next lane after sensingthat another vehicle is present on the next lane through the sensor 100,thereby deviating from the blind spot of the large vehicle 50.

Meanwhile, when the host vehicle 100 deviates from the blind spot rangeof the large vehicle 50, when another vehicle is present in back of thehost vehicle 100 to prevent the speed of the host vehicle 100 from beingdecelerated, and when another vehicle is present even on a next lane toprevent the path for deviating from the blind spot from being generated,the traveling information of the host vehicle 100 may be transmitted tothe large vehicle 50 such that the driver of the large vehicle 50 isnotified of that the host vehicle 100 is present in the blind spot.

In this case, when V2X communication is able to be made with the largevehicle 50, the traveling information (the position, the speed, thetype, the status, or the path) of the host vehicle 100 may betransmitted by utilizing V2X communication (see FIG. 8A). When V2Xcommunication with the large vehicle 50 is failed, the present of thehost vehicle 100 may be notified through a typical manner (an emergencylight, a main beam headlight, or a horn) (see FIG. 8B).

In addition, when the host vehicle 100 generates the avoiding path, thevehicle controller 200 may pass through the blind spot of the largevehicle 50. Even in this case, the traveling information of the hostvehicle 100 may be transmitted to the large vehicle 50, therebynotifying the driver of the large vehicle 50 of that the host vehicle100 is present in the blind spot.

Similarly, when V2X communication is able to be made with the largevehicle 50, the traveling information (the position, the speed, thetype, the status, or the path) of the host vehicle 100 may betransmitted by utilizing V2X communication (see FIG. 9A). When V2Xcommunication with the large vehicle 50 is failed, the present of thehost vehicle 100 and movement through the blind spot may be notifiedthrough a typical manner (an emergency light, a main beam headlight, ora horn) (see FIG. 9B).

Meanwhile, when the host vehicle 100 stays in the blind spot of thelarge vehicle 50 for a specific time without deviating from the blindspot, in the state that the host vehicle 100 is positioned in the blindspot, the driver of the host vehicle 100 and the driver of the largevehicle 50 may be notified of that the host vehicle 100 stays in theblind spot of the large vehicle 50 for the specific time. Accordingly,an alert may be provided to the driver of the host vehicle 100 such thatthe host vehicle 100 deviates from the blind spot. In addition, awarning may be provided to the driver of the large vehicle 50 such thatthe driver of the large vehicle 50 carefully drives the large vehicle50.

Hereinafter, a method for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, accordingto another embodiment of the present disclosure will be described withreference to FIGS. 10 and 11. FIGS. 10 and 11 are flowchartsillustrating the method for avoiding the blind spot of the vehicle,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The following description will be made on the assumption that the systemfor avoiding the blind spot of the vehicle performs processes of FIGS.10 and 11.

First, the large vehicle 50 traveling adjacent to the host vehicle 100may be sensed through the image sensor 130 (S101), and the dangerouslevel may be determined after determining the blind spot range of thelarge vehicle 50 (S102)

Thereafter, the vehicle controller 200 may determine whether the hostvehicle 100 is present in the blind spot of the large vehicle 50 (S103),and whether the path of deviating from the blind spot is generated(S104), and when the generation of the path of deviating from the blindspot is possible, the vehicle controller 200 may control the hostvehicle 100 to accelerate or decelerate or to change a lane to a nextlane, such that the host vehicle 100 deviates from the blind spot of thelarge vehicle 50 (S105).

Thereafter, when the host vehicle 100 is scheduled to enter the blindspot of the large vehicle 50 (S107), vehicle controller 200 determineswhether the path of avoiding the blind spot is generated (S108). Whenthe path of avoiding the blind spot is generated, vehicle controller 200may control the host vehicle 100 to accelerate or decelerate or tochange a lane to a next lane, such that the host vehicle 100 deviatesfrom the blind spot of the large vehicle 50 (S109).

Meanwhile, when the host vehicle 100 does not enter the blind spot orwhen the path of avoiding the blind spot is failed, the vehiclecontroller 200 may control the host vehicle 100 to currently maintain aninter-vehicle distance to the large vehicle 50 and maintain a currentlane (S110).

In addition, after generating the path for avoiding or deviating fromthe blind spot of the large vehicle 50 (S201), the position and thepresence of the host vehicle 100 may be needed to be notified to thedriver of the large vehicle 50 (S202).

In this case, when V2X communication is able to be made with the largevehicle 50 (S203), the traveling information including the position, thespeed, the type, or the status, or the path of the host vehicle 100 maybe notified by utilizing V2X communication (S204). When V2Xcommunication with the relevant large vehicle 50 is failed, the presenceof the host vehicle 100 may be notified through the typical manner (anemergency light, a main beam headlight, or a horn) (S205).

As described above, according to the present disclosure, when the blindspot of the large vehicle adjacently traveling is formed, the path forminimizing the dangerous level may be generated based on the travelingsituation of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle may belongitudinally or laterally controlled, such that the host vehicleavoids the blind spot. When the generation of the path of deviating fromthe blind spot of the large vehicle is failed, or when the path ofavoiding the blind spot of the large vehicle includes a path of passingthrough the blind spot, that is, when the deviation from the blind spotformed by the large vehicle is failed, the presence of the host vehicleand the movement of the host vehicle may be notified to the driver ofthe large vehicle or the traveling information may be provided to thedriver of the large vehicle, thereby minimizing the dangerous level ofthe collision accident, which may occur during the avoidance, such thatthe safe driving of the host vehicle is ensured.

According to an aspect, there is provided a system for avoiding a blindspot of a vehicle and a method thereof, in which, when a blind spot of alarge vehicle adjacently traveling is formed, a path for minimizing adangerous level is generated based on a traveling situation of a hostvehicle, and the host vehicle is longitudinally or laterally controlled,such that the host vehicle avoids the blind spot. In addition, when thegeneration of the path of deviating from the blind spot of the largevehicle is failed, or when a path of avoiding the blind spot of thelarge vehicle includes a path of passing through the blind spot, thatis, when the deviation from the blind spot formed by the large vehicleis failed, the presence of the host vehicle and the movement of the hostvehicle are notified to the driver of the large vehicle or the travelinginformation is provided to the driver of the large vehicle, therebyminimizing the dangerous level of the collision accident, which occursduring the avoidance, such that the safe driving of the host vehicle isensured.

According to an aspect, when the blind spot of the large vehicleadjacently traveling is formed, the path for minimizing the dangerouslevel may be generated based on the traveling situation of the hostvehicle, and the host vehicle may be longitudinally or laterallycontrolled, such that the host vehicle avoids the blind spot. When thegeneration of the path of deviating from the blind spot of the largevehicle is failed, or when the path of avoiding the blind spot of thelarge vehicle includes a path of passing through the blind spot, thatis, when the deviation from the blind spot formed by the large vehicleis failed, the presence of the host vehicle and the movement of the hostvehicle may be notified to the driver of the large vehicle or thetraveling information may be provided to the driver of the largevehicle, thereby minimizing the dangerous level of the collisionaccident, which may occur during the avoidance, such that the safedriving of the host vehicle is ensured.

Hereinabove, although the present disclosure has been described withreference to exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings, thepresent disclosure is not limited thereto, but may be variously modifiedand altered by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosurepertains without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure claimed in the following claims.

Therefore, the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure areprovided to explain the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, butnot to limit them, so that the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure is not limited by the embodiments. The scope of the presentdisclosure should be construed on the basis of the accompanying claims,and all the technical ideas within the scope equivalent to the claimsshould be included in the scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for avoiding a blind spot of avehicle, the apparatus comprising: an image sensor configured to provideimage information by acquiring a surrounding image of a host vehicle;and a vehicle controller configured to: sense a large vehicle travelingadjacent to the host vehicle based on the image information, determine ablind spot range of the large vehicle, determine a dangerous level ofthe blind spot range, and generate a path for the host vehicle todeviate from the blind spot or to avoids the blind spot, based on atraveling situation of the host vehicle.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the vehicle controller comprises: a blind spot range generatorconfigured to sense the large vehicle traveling adjacent to the hostvehicle, based on the image information and to determine a default blindspot range of the large vehicle; a traveling road information generatorconfigured to provide, as traveling road information, information on aroad on which the host vehicle is travelling, based on the imageinformation; a blind spot range changing device configured to change thedefault blind spot range, based on the traveling road information; ablind spot dangerous level determiner configured to match the dangerouslevel with the changed default blind spot range; and a path generatorconfigured to generate a path to minimize the dangerous level, based onthe traveling situation of the host vehicle and to longitudinally orlaterally control the host vehicle.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2, whereinthe blind spot range generator comprises: an object type determiningdevice configured to determine a type of the large vehicle, based on theimage information; an object size determining device configured tocalculate a size of the large vehicle, based on the image information; ahost vehicle information store configured to store at least a height ofthe host vehicle and a roof area of the host vehicle; and a blind spotrange determiner configured to determine the default blind spot range,based on the type of the large vehicle, the size of the large vehicle,the height of the host vehicle, and the roof area of the host vehicle.4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the blind spot range determiner isfurther configured to: select one of blind spots stored depending ontypes of large vehicles, based on the type of the large vehicle; matchthe selected blind spot with the large vehicle; and determine thedefault blind spot range based on the size of the large vehicle, theheight of the host vehicle, and the roof area of the host vehicle. 5.The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the blind spot dangerous leveldeterminer is further configured to match the dangerous level to thedefault blind spot range changed depending on a traveling path of thehost vehicle and a traveling path of the large vehicle, based on amerging point included in the traveling road information.
 6. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein the vehicle controller is furtherconfigured to: transmit traveling information of the host vehicle to thelarge vehicle, in response of a failure to generate a path in which thehost vehicle deviates from the blind spot range of the large vehicle. 7.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vehicle controller is furtherconfigured to: transmit traveling information of the host vehicle to thelarge vehicle, in response to the path of avoiding the blind spot of thelarge vehicle passing through the blind spot.
 8. The apparatus of claim1, wherein the vehicle controller is further configured to: control thehost vehicle to decelerate on a traveling path, in response to a failureto generate the path in which the host vehicle deviates from the blindspot or avoids the blind spot for traveling.
 9. The apparatus of claim1, wherein the vehicle controller is further configured to generate thepath to minimize a dangerous level of the blind spot.
 10. Aprocessor-implemented method for avoiding a blind spot of a vehicle, themethod comprising: providing image information by acquiring asurrounding image of a host vehicle through an image sensor; sensing, bya vehicle controller, a large vehicle traveling adjacent to the hostvehicle based on the image information; determining a blind spot rangeof the large vehicle; determining a dangerous level of the blind spotrange; and generating a path for the host vehicle to deviate from theblind spot or to avoid the blind spot, based on a traveling situation ofthe host vehicle.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein: the sensing ofthe large vehicle comprises sensing the large vehicle traveling adjacentto the host vehicle and determining a default blind spot range of thelarge vehicle; providing, as traveling road information, information ona road on which the host vehicle is travelling, based on the imageinformation; changing the default blind spot range, based on thetraveling road information; and matching the dangerous level with thechanged default blind spot range, and the generating of the pathcomprises generating a path to minimize the dangerous level, based onthe traveling situation of the host vehicle and longitudinally orlaterally controlling the host vehicle.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein the determining of the default blind spot range comprises:determining a type of the large vehicle, based on the image information;calculating a size of the large vehicle, based on the image information;storing data of the host vehicle, comprising a height of the hostvehicle and a roof area of the host vehicle; and determining the defaultblind spot range, based on the type of the large vehicle, the size ofthe large vehicle, the height of the host vehicle, and the roof area ofthe host vehicle.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining ofthe default blind spot range comprises: selecting one of blind spotsstored depending on types of large vehicles, based on the determinedtype of the large vehicle, and matching the selected blind spot with thesensed large vehicle; and determining the default blind spot range basedon the determined size of the large vehicle, the height of the hostvehicle, and the roof area of the host vehicle, such that blind spotrange is determined.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the matching ofthe dangerous level with the changed default blind spot range comprises:matching the dangerous level to the default blind spot range changeddepending on a traveling path of the host vehicle and a traveling pathof the large vehicle, based on a merging point included in the travelingroad information.
 15. The method of claim 10, wherein the generating ofthe path in which the host vehicle deviates from the blind spot oravoids the blind spot, comprises: transmitting traveling information ofthe host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response of a failure togenerate a path in which the host vehicle deviates from the blind spotrange of the large vehicle.
 16. The method of claim 10, wherein thegenerating of the path in which the host vehicle deviates from the blindspot or avoids the blind spot, comprises: transmitting travelinginformation of the host vehicle to the large vehicle, in response to thepath of avoiding the blind spot of the large vehicle passing through theblind spot.
 17. The method of claim 10, wherein the generating of thepath in which the host vehicle deviates from the blind spot or avoidsthe blind spot, comprises: controlling the host vehicle to decelerate ona traveling path, in response to a failure to generate the path in whichthe host vehicle deviates from the blind spot or avoids the blind spotfor traveling.
 18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause theprocessor to perform the method of claim 10.